( Ava's POV)
The skyline grew taller the closer we drove, glass towers rising like crystal spears against the muted sky. The streets below filled with people walking briskly, cars gliding in clean lines. It was busy, yes, but not the kind of noisy chaos she was used to. There were no honking horns, no shouting vendors, no music leaking from open shop doors. Just the sound of motion, perfectly synchronized.
"Hey dad"
" Yes, honey?"
" What's the city name sorry. It's )... is this a new city?" I ask confused.
" Honey, we told you before it's Lostven and if I'm not wrong, it's not that brand new. It's been what? 5 years ago." Answer Mom.
" Yas, and I'm the first one in my company that got promoted and moved to this new city. Isn't it great?" Her dad says with an excited grinn.
" Ya, amazing..." She answer with a nervous voice.
' It's a City..It' normal... should have felt alive. Bustling. But something about it felt... staged.'
"Look at that skyline," Dad said proudly, his hands firm on the steering wheel. "Isn't it something?"
"Mm-hm," I murmured, pressing my forehead against the glass.
I forced to accept it. It wasn't like I had a choice. This was home now.
The car turned off the main road and into a neighborhood, and Ava felt her breath catch.
Every single house was the same.
Two-story squares, beige walls, dark railings, trimmed lawns. Each one stood in perfect rows, identical as though copied and pasted. There were no swing sets, no cracked driveways, no paint-chipped shutters. Just repetition.
"This is it," Dad said proudly as he parked.
Mom stepped out, already directing movers to unload the boxes. "Fresh start," she said, smiling. "Everything we need."
Ava stayed in the driveway a moment longer, staring. The houses lined up like soldiers, so alike she wasn't sure which one was even theirs until movers carried a box marked LIVING ROOM inside.
"Hey," a voice called.
She turned.
A boy stood at the edge of the driveway. Sixteen, maybe seventeen, with blond hair that caught the sunlight and gray eyes so bright they almost startled her. He had his hands in his pockets, posture easy, smile kind.
"I'm Morgan,You're new here, right?" said him.
Ava nodded cautiously. "Yeah. Just moved in."
" Do you guys need any help?" He ask with a small smile.
"Honey, wait..we have a guest already." Her Mom says standing next to me looking at Morgan.
" Hello Ms, my name is Morgan. I live across your home number 7." Says Morgan with a smile introducing himself
" Hi Morgan, you can call me Ms.Belvi. and this is my daughter Ava."Answer my mom with a bright smile.
" Well then, Ms. Belvi. Do you guys need any help?"
" No need, Morgan. Thank you for offering . But, our Ava seems need to have time to settled."
"Then, want me to show you around the city? I can show you some of this city treasure " Ask Morgan looking at me.
" Well..."
" That's a great idea! Hey honey, can Ava look around the city?" Ask Mom to Dad.
" Sure!" Answer Dad while carrying some of the boxes inside.
" Well, okay." I answer.
Morgan's smile widened. "Great. Come on."
The city was beautiful at first glance-gleaming buildings, spotless streets, neat rows of shops. People moved with quiet purpose, cars gliding in silence. But soon Ava noticed what didn't fit.
A woman walked by carrying groceries, her right sleeve pinned neatly where an arm should have been. A man crossed the street on metal crutches, his legs gone from the knee down. Children played near a fountain, one hopping easily on a single foot.
Ava slowed, my stomach twisting. "...Morgan?"
"Yeah?" he asked casually.
"Why are-why are so many people missing... limbs?"
He blinked, then shrugged with that same kind smile. "Oh. That? It's normal."
Normal. The word sank into her like a stone.
They stopped at a restaurant with glass walls, polished floors, and tables arranged in perfect squares. People sat eating quietly, no loud chatter, no bursts of laughter. Morgan ordered lunch with ease, leading her to a window seat.
Ava tried to focus on her food, but her eyes kept drifting outside.
That's when she saw him.
A man stumbled into view, His shirt was torn, his stomach pressed tightly with bloody hands. He swayed, his eyes wide and wet. Tears streamed down his face as he looked around wildly, desperate, pleading.
Then his gaze locked onto mine.
"please...can't hold on anymore," he whispered, though the glass muffled his voice.
Before she could move, before she could scream, he pressed a gun to the side of his temple and fired.
The crack of the shot echoed in her bones. Blood sprayed across the pavement. His body crumpled.
I screamed. My chair scraped the floor as I stumbled backward, heart pounding in my throat.
"Oh my God, oh my God! Ambulance..call ambulance!!"I screamed.
But when I look around, inside the restaurant, no one reacted. Forks still lifted to mouths. Glasses still clinked gently. A waiter passed their table without even glancing outside. And oustide the restaurant no one stop to check that person no one even glanced at him.
Ava's throat closed.
"Why isn't anyone doing anything?! He's dead! he just..."
Morgan calmly cut his food, chewed, swallowed, then looked at her with that same steady smile.
"Because it's normal." he answer. But i could see that his eyes waver slightly.
Her voice cracked.
"Normal? He shot himself! He..he's bleeding out there!"
Morgan's green eyes softened.
"I know it's hard to understand. But here, things like that happen. And people don't make a fuss."
Ava shook her head, trembling. "That's not...that's not normal."
He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table, his voice low and kind.
"Then let's talk about something else. What grade are you in?"
Ava blinked, thrown by the sudden change.
"...Senior year. Well, I was at my old school. But here, I guess I don't know yet.."
"Central High," Morgan interrupted, smiling warmly.
She frowned. "What?"
"That's where you'll go. Central High."
"...How do you know that? I didn't even.."
"Because everyone goes there," he said, as if it were obvious.
"It's the only high school in the city."
Ava stared. "The only one?"
"Yep." He leaned back, still smiling.
"Doesn't matter your age or grade-everyone attends Central High. Always has, always will."
My stomach sank.
"But a whole city with just one school that doesn't make sense."
"Why wouldn't it?" Morgan's tone was calm, patient, almost soothing.
"It keeps things simple. No choices. No one's left out. Everyone's equal."
The word equal lingered in the air, heavier than it should have been.
Morgan reached for his glass, lifted it slightly like a toast.
"Don't worry, Ava. You'll see soon enough. You'll fit right in." with a small smile.
Ava forced a nod, though unease clawed at her chest.
Outside, two men in uniforms dragged the bloody body away. Their faces were blank, their movements efficient, like they were removing trash. Minutes later, the sidewalk gleamed clean again.
Morgan's eyes never left hers as he spoke once more, voice soft but certain:
"There's one important thinv that i should tell you. The rule in this city."
Ava's breath caught. "...What rule?"
" To be exact, there's only 1 rule in this city." He said, His smile didn't waver.
" Wait, just one?" I ask confused.
"yep and that is for Everyone must sleep at nine p.m. sharp. Every day. No exceptions."
" What? Your joking right?"
"...Ava." for the first time i met him, his tone is sharp and Morgan didn't smile at all.
The words settled over her like a shadow, colder than the blood that had stained the street.
And for the first time, Ava wondered if this city was alive at all-or if it was simply waiting for her to fall in line.
TBC...